Person:Sarah Almond (3)

Origins

Sarah Almond's origins have yet to be established with certainty. She claimed in the censuses to have been born in about 1809 at King's Walden in Hertfordshire. There does not appear to be any Sarah Almond (or variations) baptised at King's Walden in the right time frame. However, many families at King's Walden used the Colemans Green Baptist Church, including several families called Almond, and the registers there only survive from 1825 onwards. Sarah's marriage was before 1837 so her marriage record does not name her father, nor do the witnesses to the marriage seem to have been related to her. One possibility is that she was the Sarah Almond daughter of James Almond and Elizabeth Mardell baptised in Luton on 16th July 1809, but conclusive proof of this has yet to be found.

Adulthood

Sarah married at the age of 21, on 11th December 1830 at King's Walden in Hertfordshire to an agricultural labourer named William Marshall, who was about 25. He was originally from neighbouring Kimpton, and appears to have spent his early life living around the Kimpton / King's Walden / Luton borders near the hamlets of Peter's Green (in Kimpton), Diamond End (in King's Walden) and Chiltern Green (in Luton).

Just under seven months after their marriage Sarah gave birth to a son, Joseph. Two and a half years later he was followed by another son named James. Both boys' births were registered in January 1834 at the Coleman's Green Baptist Church in King's Walden, when the family was described as living at Lawrence End in King's Walden. The family then moved to Luton, living in the rural hamlets to the south east of the town, where they had another four children (Mary, George, Elizabeth and Esther) between 1835 and 1848.

The 1841 census finds Sarah, William and the children living at East Hyde in Luton parish. In 1851 they were in the adjoining hamlet of Newmill End, and Sarah was described as a straw plaiter.

Sarah's daughter Mary had not been baptised as an infant. She was baptised aged 15 in 1851 at the Wesleyan Methodist Church in Luton, but died the following year aged only 16.

Some time between 1851 and 1861 the family moved away from the rural hamlets of Luton parish into the town itself. The 1861 census finds William and Sarah living at 72 Albert Road. Four of their five surviving children were also living in Albert Road at that time - and the fifth was just around the corner in Chobham Street. In 1861 Sarah was described as a bonnet sewer, whilst William was no longer an agricultural labourer following the move into town - he was described as a brewer's man. Sarah's mother Elizabeth died in 1861, aged 74.

Between 1853 and 1863, Sarah saw four of her children marry in Luton.

On 13th August 1863, William was making deliveries by horse and truck for his employer, the brewer Henry Pinks Arnold. Whilst making deliveries at The Heath in King's Walden he suffered some sort of fit of apoplexy or heart attack, fell from the horse and was run over as the it bolted, pulling the brewer's truck behind it. William died in the road where he fell. He was 57. The subsequent inquest described William as a "steady sober man".

Following William's death, Sarah saw her daughter Elizabeth move to Winchester. She also saw her youngest daughter, Esther, die in 1867, aged 18. By early 1868, Sarah had had fifteen grandchildren, although one had died as a baby. All but two had been born at Luton.

Sarah died on 19th April 1868 at the Union Workhouse in Luton, having been suffering with dropsy. She was said to be 59 years old. She was buried at the General Cemetery on Rothesay Road in Luton.

1. ↑ England. 1841 Census Schedules for England and Wales, Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. (
   Kew, Richmond, Greater London TW9 4DU, United Kingdom:
   The National Archives (abbreviated TNA), formerly the UK General Register Office.)
   Class HO107; Piece 4; Book 13; Folio 3; Page 1, 6 Jun 1841.

   Address: East Hyde Hamlet, Luton, Bedfordshire
   William Marshall, male, 35 [1801-6], Ag lab, b. Bedfordshire
   Sarah Marshall, female, 30 [1806-11], b. Bedfordshire
   Joseph Marshall, male, 9 [1831/2], b. Bedfordshire
   James Marshall, male, 7 [1833/4], b. Bedfordshire
   Mary Marshall, female, 5 [1835/6], b. Bedfordshire
   George Marshall, male, 3 [1837/8], b. Bedfordshire

2. ↑ ^2.0 2.1 England. 1851 Census Returns for England and Wales. (
   Kew, Richmond, Greater London TW9 4DU, United Kingdom:
   The National Archives (abbreviated TNA), formerly the UK General Register Office.)
   Class HO107; Piece 1757; Folio 377; Page 1, 30 Mar 1851.

   Address: Newmill End, Luton, Bedfordshire
   William Marshall, head, married, male, 44 [1806/7], Ag lab, b. Kimpton, Hertfordshire
   Sarah Marshall, wife, married, female, 41 [1809/10], Straw plaitter, b. Kings Walden, Hertfordshire
   Joseph Marshall, son, unmarried, male, 19 [1831/2], Ag lab, b. Kimpton, Hertfordshire
   James Marshall, son, unmarried, male, 17 [1833/4], Straw plaitter, b. Kimpton, Hertfordshire
   George Marshall, son, unmarried, male, 14 [1836/7], Ag lab, b. Luton, Bedfordshire
   Elizabeth Marshall, daughter, female, 8 [1842/3], b. Luton, Bedfordshire
   Esther Marshall, daughter, female, 2 [1848/9], b. Luton, Bedfordshire

3. ↑ ^3.0 3.1 England. 1861 Census Schedules for England and Wales, Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. (
   Kew, Richmond, Greater London TW9 4DU, United Kingdom:
   The National Archives (abbreviated TNA), formerly the UK General Register Office.)
   Class RG9; Piece 1012; Folio 122; Page 37, 7 Apr 1861.

   Address: 72 Albert Road, Luton, Bedfordshire
   Wm Marshall, head, married, male, 54 [1806/7], Brewers man, b. Kimpton, Hertfordshire
   Sarah Marshall, wife, married, female, 51 [1809/10], Bonnet sewer, b. Kingswalden, Hertfordshire
   Elizabeth Marshall, daughter, unmarried, female, 18 [1842/3], Bonnet sewer, b. Luton, Bedfordshire
   Esther Marshall, daughter, unmarried, female, 12 [1848/9], Bonnet sewer, b. Luton, Bedfordshire

4. ↑ Death certificate, in General Register Office. England and Wales Civil Registration. (London: General Register Office).

   REGISTRATION DISTRICT LUTON
   1868 DEATH in the Sub-district of Luton in the Counties of Beds & Herts
   No. 260
   When and where died: Nineteenth April 1868, Union Workhouse Luton
   Name: Sarah Marshall
   Sex: Female
   Age: 59 years
   Occupation: Widow of William Marshall, Laborer
   Cause of death: Dropsy, Certified
   Informant: Elizabeth Brightman, present at the death, Union Workhouse Luton
   When registered: Twenty first April 1868
   Registrar: Charles Maffey, Registrar

   
5. ↑ Luton, Bedfordshire, England. Cemetery Registers of General Cemetery, Rothesay Road, 1854-1964 (Bedfordshire Family History Society).

   Surname: Marshall
   Given name: Sarah
   Age: 59
   Grave ID: 13598
   Class: 4 Gen
   Date: 23 Apr 1868